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Electric Utility

About the Electric Utility

The St. Charles Municipal Electric Utility began in 1892, when the City Council unanimously approved a payment to Phillip Harvey of $520 for preliminary work on a lighting plant that would establish a City electric utility with capacity to power 1,500 incandescent lights. Soon after, the entire male population of St. Charles (272) voted by a 2/3 majority to approve the plan and invest $20,000 in the building and steam generator.

This Electric Utility has grown to serve over 15,500 customers with an all time peak of 130 megawatts. The City has a long term power purchase agreement with the Illinois Municipal Electric Association (IMEA) that is in force until 2035. ComEd delivers power at 34,500 volts to the City's 9 substations the City then transforms it to our primary distribution voltage of 12,470 volts for distribution to step-down transformers supplying customer meters.

The Electric Utility is staffed by full- and part-time employees in several operation groups that provide specialized services, including:

An electric administration staff that handles the administrative functions such as personnel, budgeting, power purchases, rate design, interdepartmental cooperation, city wide goal setting and participation on city committees.

The electric engineering group, responsible for system design, maintenance programs, system mapping, and adherence to codes and standards.

An electric line area that constructs and maintains the electric infrastructure.

The electric metering area that installs and maintains the metering equipment.

A telecommunications group is responsible for the installation, operation and maintenance of the City owned telecommunications infrastructure.